title: Nylon wool purification alters the activation of T cells.
abstract: Purification of lymphocytes, particularly T cells, is commonly performed using nylon wool. This enrichment method selectively retains B cells and some myeloid cells allowing a significantly more pure T cell population to flow through a nylon wool column. T cells purified in this fashion are assumed to be unaltered and functionally naïve, however some studies have suggested aberrant in vitro T cell responses after nylon wool treatment. We found that nylon wool purification significantly altered T cell proliferation, expression of activation markers and production of cytokines. Our results suggest that nylon wool treatment modifies T cell activation responses and that caution should be used when choosing this purification method.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
authors.forename: Jillian E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Wohler
authors.forename: Scott R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Barnum
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000276:immunology; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002469:Cell Separation; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D051379:Mice; D009757:Nylons; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000943:Antigens, Differentiation; D009757:Nylons